Greetings fellow Rotarians! Our speaker today was Terri Sabens, Pet Coordinator for the Blue Star Mothers of Vermont. This organization is a group of mothers who now have, or have had, children honorably serving in all branches of the United States Military. Their mission is to provide emotional support to both service members in times of need and the families of our fallen. As part of their efforts, Blue Star Mothers of Vermont provides therapy dogs to veterans in need of these services. The organization facilitates the process of matching eligible veterans with local shelter dogs and cats. The chosen animal then goes through good manner training until such time as it is ready to serve as a companion for the selected veteran. In addition to matching veterans with animals and training the animals, Blue Star Mothers of Vermont also provides veterinary service assistance, food, supplies, and follow up to assist the veteran with any issues they may have with these dogs. Our Club has provided considerable financial backing for this endeavor over the years and we look forward to continuing this relationship.  This is yet another example of the great work that our fundraising efforts help finance. For more information about this organization, please visit its website at: https://bluestarmothersofvermont.org/

            Our Club will once again be providing volunteers for the Essex Eats Out dinner at the First Congregational Church.  We are looking for several volunteers to help with set up, serving and clean up for the dinner that will be held on Friday, October 5^th.  We also need people to assist with preparation of the food.  A sign-up sheet will be circulating at our next meeting, but you may also sign up by contacting Penny Klein at penny@sugarmaplecollegeconsulting.com

 

 

            We still need several volunteers for the Feed My Starving Children food packing event. This year’s event will take place on Saturday, October 20^th at the Albert D. Lawton Middle School in Essex Junction from 9:00am to 11:00am. If you and your families are interested in helping out, please sign up at future meetings or e-mail Amy Jackman at amymj@us.ibm.com

 

 

            We are looking for volunteers to help staff the Heavenly Pantry Food Shelf in the next few months.  We will need volunteers for the following dates: Monday, October 8; Thursday, October 25; Monday, November 12; Thursday, November 15; Monday, December 10; and Thursday, December 20. Please contact Sharon Dettenrieder at sharon.dettenrieder@gmail.com if you are able to fill any of these shifts.

 

Upcoming Meeting Schedule:  Wednesday, October 3, 2018 – We will be holding our monthly committee meetings.

 

For the complete list of upcoming speakers and information about the Club, please go to our website at www.essexrotary.org   Be sure to also follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/EssexVermontRotary , on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/essexvermontrotary/ and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/essex_rotary

 

 

       Yours in Rotary,

 

Jason Ruwet